


Speed Dating

by elizabeth_darcy



Series: Pride and Prejudice [10]
Category: Pride and Prejudice & Related Fandoms, Pride and Prejudice (2005), Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, One Shot, Speed Dating
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-03
Updated: 2017-01-03
Packaged: 2018-09-14 10:41:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,534
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9178126
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/elizabeth_darcy/pseuds/elizabeth_darcy
Summary: Gigi and Jane organize a weekly Speed Dating Night at a local bar.In order for it to become weekly though, they have to get as many people as possible to come to the first few events.So they both invited their siblings.You know what happens…





	

"My favorite movie is Anna Karenina,” I answered, “It's always been one of my favorite books growing up. And I don't know why, but I just love Keira Knightly."

No response.

I took a deep breath. _How had I let Jane drag me into this?_ "What's yours?" I asked, patiently.

He scoffed and checked his watch.

I frowned, "Listen, I'm not sure if you're aware, but we're supposed to be having a conversation right now. They asked a prompt question and everything; it’s not hard.” Still nothing. “You could at least _look_ at me!"

He rolled his eyes slowly before they landed on my own, "Better?"

"Not really."

He gave a sneer before picking up his drink again.

"Why did you even come to this thing?” I crossed my arms, “You're _clearly_ not interested in it at all."

"And you are?" He shot back.

"No! But at least I'm fucking trying."

He scowled at my use of fuck.

"Then why _are_ you here?" He asked.

I narrowed my eyes, "My sister is the one who organized this and she needed more people to fill the seats," I glared, "What's your excuse?"

"Surprisingly, the same one."

I furrowed my brows. _Wait_ ... "You're Gigi's brother?"

"The one and only."

I frowned deeper. _Great_ .

"And you're Jane's sister?"

"Yeah. I thought that Gigi said you weren't going to be able to come tonight. She said she begged as much as she could but you still said no."

"Yes, well. My schedule cleared up last minute and I figured I would come and surprise her."

"Right."

I exhaled and looked away. Scanned the tables around us, I watched everyone else having animated discussions with their table mate.

And here I was. With _this_ asshole.

I made a mental note to ask Gigi why her brother had such a stick up his ass.

A light caught my attention from the corner of my eye and I turned back to see that my table mate had pulled out his phone.

“Are you fucking _joking_?”

He looked up at me, "Well, you aren't being very entertaining, and I have business I could be getting back to."

My mouth fell open with shock. “‘ _Entertaining_?!’ Oh, I’ll give you entertainment-”

_Ding!_

"Okay, folks!" Gigi's voice chirped on the microphone, "Everyone on the outer circle, if you would move on to the next table and I'll give you your next prompt!"

_I swear to God, this man was SO lucky that bell rang._

I roughly stood up, yanked my purse from the counter, and stalked to the table next to me, thankful that I’d hopefully never have to talk with that man again.

 

*****

 

Fate is cruel.

I glared and slowly sat down, "Why the hell are you back? I seem to recall that you hated every second of the last one."

He scowled back, "I couldn't resist seeing _you_ ," he replied sarcastically.

"Ha ha. But seriously, you aren't helping Gigi if you're driving away every single girl that comes to your table."

"Well, at least _I_ had an effect on them. I didn't see _you_ going home with anybody last time."

My mouth fell open, "How dare you!"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. Just answer the prompt: who's your favorite musician?"

"Oh, you want to talk now, huh?"

He rolled his eyes, "I'm trying to be cooperative."

"What, was Gigi angry at you for sulking all night last week?"

"Actually, yes. Now, who is your favorite musician?"

"I think I'd rather go back to the movie question from last time."

"God, you're so infuriating!"

"Thank you."

"Your favorite movie is Anna Karenina; we've already been over this."

"Aw, how sweet! You remembered!" I mocked.

He scowled again, "I remembered it because I was surprised someone like _you_ would enjoy Russian literature."

"' _Someone like me_ ?' Was that meant as a compliment or an insult?"

"Neither, it was a fact. You seemed like a Jane Austen person to me."

I grimaced, "Are you joking? _No_ . Anna Karenina may have love stories in it, but it's laced with commentary on society and politics."

"And Jane Austen isn't?"

"Who sounds like a Jane Austen person now?"

He glared.

I continued, "Jane Austen doesn't debate morality that much. Besides, her stories are ridiculous and romantic. People don't fall in love so perfectly. It doesn't work like that."

"Ah, you're a pessimist."

"I'm a _realist_ . I would like to believe in true love and soulmates and all that crap, but I can't."

"Doesn't Anna Karenina have true love?"

"With Anna and Vronsky? Don't make me laugh-"

"Not them. I meant Levin and Kitty."

I shrugged, "Yes, they are in love. But Tolstoy contrasts them with everyone else. He doesn't just allow everything to be wrapped up in a nice little bow. He’s _realistic_. Life isn’t so easy and cookie-cutter clean. Some loves flourish while others do not. And some loves were never love at all. Jane Austen, on the other hand, just gives out happy endings left and right. What’s the point of that?”

“Perhaps to appease the reader?"

I made a face, “An author should never write for the reader. It cheapens the work, and neither party is satisfied.”

He chuckled, “I can guarantee that Jane Austen’s audience was satisfied.” I frowned at him and he continued, “Maybe she did write it for herself. Who’s to say that she herself disliked happy endings?”

I scrunched my nose, “Life is not created with the intention of a happy ending. It's unnatural.”

He made no comment, instead staring at me with his intense blue eyes.

I attempted to stare back for as long as I could to hold my ground. After what felt like an hour of fierce glaring, I couldn't stand it anymore.

"What?" I snapped.

He blinked a few times before looking away, "Nothing."

I ran a hand through my hair and exhaled, annoyed, "I guess I listen to a lot of Missy Higgins' music."

He looked back up and met my eyes, raising an eyebrow.

"What's _your_ favorite?" I asked, bracing myself for some shitty hipster band.

"I've never heard of Missy Higgins," he said, instead, "Is she any good?"

My eyebrows knit together, "What exactly do you expect me to say? She's my favorite, of course I think she's good."

He looked away, slightly embarrassed.

_Ding!_

"Well, Darcy, it was great chatting with you-"

"'Darcy?' I have a first name you know."

"Not one you bothered to tell me. All you said was that Gigi Darcy was your sister. So that's what I’m going with.”

He frowned, "Fine, _Bennet_ ."

" Fine ."  
  
*****

  
"You're back? Again? You know this event has picked up enough that they don't need extra people anymore. You don't need to keep coming."

"Neither do you."

"Maybe I was hoping to find someone," I replied, sitting down.

"Maybe I was, too."

I snorted, "Yeah, right. Quit while you're ahead, I say. Why not accept that one girl who's been all over you tonight? Beggars can't be choosers, after all."

"Well, well, well, _someone_ was staring at me while she was at a different table. Are you jealous?" He questioned, grinning.

I attempted to keep in my laughter at that implication. “In your dreams, Darcy. No, I wasn't staring, it’s just that it was a little hard to _not_ see, considering her hand was nearly down your pants the entire time."

He winced, “Don't remind me.”

“I don't know, I think she's your best bet at a girlfriend. After all, no sane human being would ever date you.”

He narrowed his eyes, "If you really want to know, she's my best friend's sister. She's been obsessed with me for over a decade."

"' _Obsessed_ ?' I think you're highly overestimating your own worth there, Darce."

"Hey, you agreed that she was all over me."

"Yeah, but that just means that she's desperate and willing to scrape the bottom of the barrel."

" _Ouch_ . But if that were true, then how come she’s not doing that to every guy in the building?"

I narrowed my eyes, "Fine. Maybe she's not settling. Maybe she just has poor taste in men."

"Wow, if you have a crush on me, just say so."

"Don't make me gag."

"Jeez, you are really coming on strong tonight. I'd rather you not take your bad day out on me, thanks."

"It's actually the opposite. I’ve had a great day today."

He stared at me and opened his mouth to say something, but closed it.

“So,” I continued, “It looks like that best friend of yours is dating my sister,” I grit my teeth and narrowed my eyes, “I swear, if he hurts her, he’ll end up dead.”

“If _she_ hurts _him_ , she’ll end up dead,” he bit back, quickly.

“Oh, so you _do_ care about other people besides yourself? Huh, that's a surprise.”

“Excuse me?”

I shrugged, “I’ve heard things.”

“Like what? What my first name is?”

“Actually, no. That's still a mystery. And I’d like to keep it that way. The less I know about you, the better. That means I can stay farther away from you.”

“What exactly did you hear? Who would even want to talk about me?”

I rolled my eyes, “I ask myself the same question.”

“Says the one who _was_ talking about me.”

“I wasn't talking, I was listening.”

“Same thing.”

“Doubtful.”

“Who was the person talking?”

_Ding!_

“Goodnight, Darcy.”

“Wait-”

I got up and left before he could ask again.

 

*****

 

“I’m really proud of you for being able to do this,” I encouraged as we walked through the door of the club.

Jane gave a grimace-like smile, most likely praying for me to not continue speaking about it. We both knew how fast she would start to cry at the mention of his name.

But she hadn't gone to a Speed Dating Night in the last two weeks since the breakup, and she really needed to come back. This whole event was her idea in the first place and, while it would destroy her to see people in love unlike herself, I knew how important seeing her work come to fruition was to her. Besides, not having Jane as backup when things went wrong was beginning to take a toll on Gigi.

“Charlotte’s coming tonight, I think,” I changed the subject, “In fact, I think she's coming with that Collins guy she met the other week. I don't know how she stands him, I could hardly bear my five minutes with-”

I froze as my eyes landed on a certain person within the crowd. _Charlie._

My jaw set and I stepped forward to go yell at that bastard, “Who does he think he is? Parading around in front of you after what happened! I’m going to kill him.”

“No, Lizzy,” she pulled me backward, “He must be here for Gigi, it’s not-”

“I don't give a rat’s _ass_ who he’s here for. He’s leaving. _Now._ ”

“Lizzy-”

I didn't listen to her; I knew her well enough to know how much Charlie’s presence here would upset her no matter what she told me. Besides, Gigi would agree completely that Charlie was going out-of-bounds.

He had no right to be at _Jane’s_ event.

I stormed off in his direction but quickly found myself lost among the crowd. Cussing, I spun around to go back to the front of the room and stand on the steps for a vantage point, but found myself face to face with Darcy instead.

He wasn't Charlie, but he would work well enough.

“Darcy-”

“There's something I want to say,” he prefaced.

“I don't care,” I snatched his arm and dragged him to the side of the room toward a more private area where I could yell at him better.

“But I need to say it,” he continued.

I ignored him, “Why are you back? Get the _hell_ out of here. And take your douchebag of a friend with you. How _dare_ you bring him here after what he did!”

“What _he_ did?!”

“Yeah, what _he_ did! _He’s_ the one who broke up with Jane!”

“Jane's the one who continued seeing other guys after they became exclusive!”

“Are you joking?” I fumed, “She runs this event, of course she was going to participate in it!”

“Then why enter a relationship?”

“She wasn't _actually_ looking, she just needed more girls in the rotation! That was her job before they were dating and it remained her job while they were!”

“Really? Because she seemed pretty eager to talk to new guys!”

“‘ _Eager!’_ She’s _nice!_ But you don't know the meaning of that, do you? After all, you had no qualms about taking your phone out while we sat at the table the first time! Perhaps she should have taken some notes from you on how to be an insufferable prick!”

“Hey,” he growled angrily, “I didn't mean to be rude; I just had work I had to get done! I tried to clear my meetings that day so I could come help Gigi, but that only added to my workload. I was trying to kill two birds with one stone!”

“I don't care, okay? _Never_ talk to me again. Just get out of here _now_ before I drag your ass out,” I scoffed, spinning on my heel and walking away.

He reached out for my arm and pulled me back, “Just hear me out-”

I whirled around, “Oh, hear you out? Like you should've done with Jane’s side of the story, but didn't?”

“ _Bennet_ -”

“No! You _hurt_ her, Darcy! Do you not _get_ it?! You hurt her, so you’ve hurt me. Maybe you don't have the capacity to understand any form of empathy or emotion-”

“I understand emotion perfectly well!”

“Oh, do you? Then explain to me how it feels to get your heart shattered! Because perhaps then I could relate to Jane enough to help her out of this. God, do you even think about anyone besides yourself? _Ever_?”

“Of course I do!” He retorted, harshly.

“Really?! You didn't with George Wickham!”

Realization dawned upon him and his face twisted into more rage than before, “ _George Wickham_! Is that who you were talking about me with? Is that who’s been feeding you lies?”

“ _Lies_ ?! Was your breaking up Jane and Charlie a lie?! Because if it was, I would _love_ to know!”

“Lies about my _character_! What did he tell you?”

“He told me the truth! That you refused him the money your father wanted to grant him, forcing him to live on the streets with nothing!”

“‘ _The streets_!’” He replied, incredulously.

“Yes, the streets!”

“Oh, definitely, if you consider a condo in Manhattan ‘the streets’, then yes! He was on the streets!”

“And why should I believe you?! He told me you would try to twist the story!”

“ _Me?_ ” He nearly laughed.

I sneered, “I’m done with this stupid back and forth! I don't care what did or did not happen between you and George. The relevant thing is that you came here to rub salt into Jane’s wounds, and _that's_ what makes you so awful!”

“I did not! I came to talk to _you!”_

“Well we're talking now, aren't we?! So, what?! What is so important that you have to say to me!”

“I love you!”

I gasped. My eyes widened with shock and disgust as I tried to comprehend what he’d just said.

He took a deep breath, pinching the bridge of his nose, “This isn't how I meant for it to happen...”

“Oh, so you didn't mean to insult my sister minutes before deciding that you were in love with me? Could’ve fooled me!”

“Bennet…”

“What exactly did you think you were going to accomplish by telling me? And right now of all times! Did you think I was going to drop everything I just said and decide that, you know what? Maybe we should be together? Well, I’m not! You're a selfish, rude, and proud man who I would never in a million years go on a date with. Take your shitty friend and stay out of both my life and my sister’s life _forever_!”

He straightened his spine and scowled down at me for a few moments. I stared back just as defiantly, until his entire exterior cracked and sorrow flooded his emotions.

“I’m sorry,” he replied, hoarsely. He searched my eyes for a moment longer before turning around and disappearing into the crowd.

I stood, bewildered at this new side of Darcy. I’d never seen him display any emotion besides disdain or snark.

_What just happened?!_

 

*****

 

I bit my lip and slid silently into the chair, tugging nervously at the sleeves of my sweater.

My face fell red with embarrassment as I recalled some of the things I’d said to him all those weeks ago. I closed my eyes, cringing and trying to push those memories out.

“How have you been?” He asked, distantly.

I looked up at him.

“I don't know. Okay, I guess.”

“I’m glad to hear that.”

“ _Are_ you?”

His eyebrows creased together as he frowned, “You still think that I’m that apathetic?”

“No, no,” I replied quickly, attempting to mend the conversation. _God, why was it that every single time I opened my mouth around him, I ruined everything?_ “I just… After what I said… I figured you'd be more angry than this.”

He inhaled and exhaled slowly, “I was. But I’m not anymore. I haven't been for a while.”

“Why are you back?” I cringed even more at my wording, but found myself continuing, “I mean- I… I haven't seen you here for a few months...”

“You said you didn't want to see me.”

“Yes… but that doesn't explain why you're here now.”

“I’m not back for you,” he explained. I deflated. “It’s… Gigi’s performing later tonight, and I’ve never missed one of her performances. I didn't want to overstep your boundaries, but my relationship with her is incredibly important and-”

“You don't have to explain yourself. I understand.”

He half-smiled, “Okay. Good. I’m glad. I was really worried you wouldn't feel that way and you would've called security or something…”

I internally kicked myself for putting him in a position where he didn't want to come see his sister perform just because of me. God, I was non-stop wrecking his life. “I wouldn't have called security,” I replied quietly.

He fixed his stare on me.

I fidgeted with the tablecloth nervously. When he didn't say anything, I took a deep breath and looked back up, “I'm so sorry about what happened in December,” I blurted quickly, “It was out of line and atrocious and so horribly ill-informed and-”

“It's okay,” he cut in, “I don't blame you.”

“You… what _?_ ”

“You trusted someone you shouldn't have trusted. But you didn't know. And how could you have?”

“I shouldn't have said anything without letting you tell me your side first.”

“Perhaps. But you’d already made up your mind about me. You wouldn't have trusted my side anyway.”

“Well… I do now.”

He smiled, “Good. I’m happy that you do.”

“Thank you for telling me. I don't think that could have been easy.”

“It was easier than you think.”

I raised my eyebrows.

“Telling someone that you're in… Telling _anyone_ to not trust that rat of a man is actually fairly easy.”

_Ding!_

“Well… thank you either way. I don't know what could've happened if you hadn't.”

He nodded, “Anytime.”

 

_*****_

 

“Hey.”

“Hey.”

“You're back? Is Gigi performing again?”

“No. She's not… I’m, um, I’m here for Charlie actually.”

My face fell.

_Charlie?!_

“He's come to talk to Jane-” he answered hastily, recognizing my anger, “He wants to make amends. He was wrong.”

_You're fucking right he was wrong._

“I know he's not welcome here, and I’m sorry. But they need to talk. Charlie wants to get back together. And if they aren't going to get back together, then they at least need some kind of closure.”

_Closure?! He didn't seem to care much about closure when he left her alone three months ago with no explanation!_

But I didn't say that. I was furious, but he was right. They needed to talk, no matter what happened.

“I’m sorry it took him… us… so long. That was cruel to you.”

“Yeah,” I replied, bitterly.

Pain and regret flashed across his face and I felt guilty for replying so harshly.

I sighed and released my anger. Darcy wasn't still angry at me for what I did to him, I should at least do the same for him. “What’s done is done. The important part is how you decide to fix it. It's better that you come back late than never at all. Thank you.”

His eyes widened and he raised his eyebrows and at my response.

I laughed, “Well, I’m not a monster _all_ the time, Darcy.”

“You’re never a monster.”

My heart skipped a beat at his sincerity.

“But you're surprised I’m not yelling at you,” I continued.

“I'm surprised you're _forgiving_ me. If someone had done that to Gigi…” He shook his head, “I would have never forgiven them. I would never… Why are you forgiving me?”

“You forgave me. For everything I said and did to you. Let's just consider us even.”

“But what you said was justified. I _was_ proud and rude and I treated you poorly. You had every right to be angry, and, looking back, I don't understand how I thought that telling you under _any_ circumstance would've gotten a different response. I’m sorry.”

We sat together quietly, letting all the apologies and regrets sink in.

“Let's just forget about all this,” I said, taking another deep breath, “It’s behind us. Let's just focus on now. The question was ‘What's your favorite-’”

_Ding!_

Darcy chuckled slightly.

“Goodnight,” I smiled back, standing up from my chair.

He nodded, “Goodnight, Lizzy.”

My heart stopped. Lizzy? _Lizzy?_

He’d never called me Lizzy before. Only “Bennet.”

Well… so what. This wasn't a big deal. It was my name. Basic thing. What else should a person call me? Lizzy. Of course Lizzy. It didn't matter.

_Why did it matter?!_

 

*****

 

“Hello,” I greeted, sitting down across from him.

“Hello. How are you?”

“I'm great, actually… for the first time in a long time. Jane’s finally happy again.”

He grinned, “Good.”

“And how are you?”

“Great. For the same reason with Charlie.”

“Glad to hear that. Okay, so, the question was ‘What do you do for fun?’”

“I don't usually have much time for fun,” he shrugged.

“You don't call wasting your Friday nights at a three-star bar talking to strangers for five minutes each ‘fun _?’_ ” I joked.

He chuckled, “Believe it or not, but I actually do find these fun.”

“Since _when_?”

“Since recently. Someone taught me to stop being such a douche all the time and relax. And let me tell you, it makes life a lot easier.” He paused before continuing, “Maybe _you_ should try it sometime.”

My eyes widened and my mouth fell open with fake offense. “How dare you!” I grinned.

He laughed.

“I’ll have you know that I am the _Queen_ of Fun.”

“Oh?”

“Yes! In fact _,_ bowling last night was _my_ idea.”

“Was it?”

“Yep.”

“Then that proves it,” he grinned, “Because last night wasn't any fun.”

I narrowed my eyes, “You're just bitter because I kicked your ass in all four games.”

He scoffed, “Barely.”

“I got three strikes in a row in Game 2!”

“ _Impressive!_ ” He mocked, “Meanwhile, Gigi and I dominated laser tag.”

“Okay, that wasn't fair though.”

“You're right, you had three people on your team and I had two.”

“I think you're forgetting that the two other people on my team are the nicest people in the world and refused to shoot anyone without staying there to apologize. It was obvious I was going to lose. And anyway, Gigi is basically a ninja; I doubt that she’s ever been on a losing team in laser tag!”

“She hasn't.”

“Not surprised.”

_Ding!_

_“Alright!_ ” Gigi’s voice boomed over the microphone speakers, “That's a wrap on tonight's Speed Dating! Hope you all had fun! Make sure to get home safely and don’t forget to come back next week!”

“Goodnight,” Darcy smiled, bringing his cup to his lips and giving me a small wave.

“Goodnight... _William_.”

He choked on his drink slightly, and I laughed. Served him right for getting _me_ tripped up about his saying _my_ first name.

“See you next weekend.”

“Actually-”

I stopped and turned back around,

“Actually, you won't. I’m heading back home tomorrow night.”

I froze, “What?”

He shrugged, “Don't have anything left to do here. I came back to see Gigi and to wingman for Charlie. He's got it covered now, so I’m out.”

My heart sunk. I never thought that… I never considered that he didn't live here.

“Oh. Right, of course.”

I shook it off. Why was I upset? I had no reason to be upset.

Why would I even expect him to stay? _How_ could I expect him to stay? For _me?_ Ha! No chance!

“Lizzy…” My heart sank all over again at how he sounded saying my name, “I’d just… I’d like to thank you for…”

“Annoying you?” I joked, pushing away my sudden desire to cry.

“Keeping me on my toes,” he corrected, “It was… _fun._ ”

 _Great_. ‘Fun.’

Because _that's_ what I wanted.

I took a deep breath and held my chin a little higher, faking confidence, “I hope you have a good trip home.”

“Thank you. Here, let me walk you out,” he stood up and took his coat from the backside of his chair, tossing it effortlessly over his shoulder (God, he looked straight out of some fancy magazine).

“Oh, no thanks. I, um, I have to go to the bathroom. And I’m walking home with Jane. Thank you, though.”

Before he could say anything else, I gave him a smile with the last amount of energy I had and whirled off toward the bathroom. I couldn't handle this anymore.

_What was going on? Why did I care if he went back home! I hated him months ago, why did I suddenly not?_

A girl stepped in my path, shaking me out of my thoughts.

“Caroline…” I greeted, slowly, “Can I help you?”

“No. But can you help yourself?”

“Excuse me?” What was she on about now?

“Don't act innocent! I know precisely what kind of game you’re playing here!”

“‘Game?’”

“You're trying to trick Darcy into falling for you!”

“Are you serious?”

“He is dating _me_ , bitch, so back off!” She snapped.

I ignored the pang in my heart at that statement, hoping- no, _knowing_ that Darcy would never date Caroline Bingley. “Oh, really? How about you go convince _him_ instead of me? Because I’m pretty sure if you asked him, he would disagree.”

“Well, _you_ aren't dating him!”

“You're right! I’m not! I _never_ said I was!”

“But you want to! I can see it when you talk to him. You love him. But you can't. He is _mine_!”

“Fine! He’s yours! Are you happy now?!”

This woman was insane. Thoroughly insane.

“No. Promise me you will never date him,” she ordered.

I scoffed, “Are you _joking_? Absolutely not!”

“So you _do_ want to date him!”

“I thought you just said that I couldn't!”

“It doesn't matter whether you can or can't, you _want_ to.”

I took a deep breath and recomposed myself before I said something as ridiculous as her, “His romantic life is neither of our businesses. So shut up about it. If he likes you the way you are saying, then you have nothing to worry about with me. Goodnight, Caroline.”

She tried to yank me back, but I slid into the large crowd and disappeared towards the bathrooms to hide from her.

 

[LATER]

I exhaled slowly and straightened out my dress.

I’d been in the bathroom long enough. Surely Caroline was gone by now.

I opened the door and peeked through to find a thinned crowd. Everyone from the speed dating event had left, leaving only small scraggles of people loitering around the booths as well as a few loners drinking at the bar. And luckily, no Caroline in sight. _Perfect_.

I sighed and headed across the room. Slipping behind the bar, I grabbed my purse and keys before turning to the bartender, “Hey, Fitz? Is Jane still here?”

He shook his head, “Don’t think so. I saw her walk out with Charlie, Gigi, and Darcy a while ago.”

I nodded and slung my purse strap around my shoulder, “Alright, thanks.”

Guess I’d be walking home alone tonight. _Fun_.

“See ya next week,” He called, as I moved toward the exit.

“See ya,” I replied. My stomach sank at the idea. How many more of these shitty speed dates was I going to have to endure? How long was I going to have to wait until I finally found someone?

 _Except I already have found someone,_ I thought, pushing open the front door, _Just not someone who wants to date me back._

I took a deep breath of the chilly, night air and started down the sidewalk toward the apartment, attempting to think of other things. Specifically non-relationship things.

“Hey, Lizzy!”

I paused. That wasn’t…?

I spun around, “ _William?_ ”

He ran to catch up with me. My entire body buzzed from a flood of mixed emotions that I couldn’t even begin to name.

“You took a long time in there.”

I blinked, “Have you been… _waiting_ for me?” _There was no way! He couldn’t have, right? Why on earth would he do that?!_

“Oh, uh, yeah. Kinda. Should I not have?” He asked, uneasily.

“Oh- no, no, it's fine,” I reassured, still dumbfounded, “It's just… I was in the bathroom for like half an hour.”

He shrugged.

I smiled slightly, still lost as to why he had waited.

“Do you mind if I walk you home?” He asked.

_Yes, I mind. Because it’s just going to be a painful twenty minutes of me realizing how much I’m in…_

“Yeah, sure.”

He smiled and we began slowly making our way down the street.

“Do you know where Jane went?” I said, hoping to divert the conversation- and my brain- to easier subjects.

“She, Charlie, and Gigi went out for ice cream.”

“Gigi volunteered to third wheel?” I inquired, surprised.

“They offered to pay, and the place they're going to is right next to her apartment, so she got a free car ride home. I think she'll be fine.”

“But _you_ didn't go?” I continued, slowly.

He took a deep breath and shrugged, “Ice cream’s not really my thing.”

“Is waiting half an hour for some girl ‘your thing?’”

“Yeah, well, I needed to talk to that girl.”

My chest constricted in fear, “Oh?”

“Caroline told me about your conversation.”

“What about it?” I asked, nervously considering everything I’d said.

“Well, I just… I don’t know, maybe she was lying- because she lies _a lot_ \- but... I don't see her gaining much from lying, so-”

“Just say it,” I cringed.

He bit the inside of his cheek, “Her exact words were ‘That annoying little know-it-all has a stupid crush on you. How pathetic is that?’”

I shut my eyes tightly and wished to disappear.

“I… um… I know that she’s not very trustworthy, and she's also not the most perceptive person ever so I would understand if you say that she's being ridiculous. But… if she's _not_ , then I… I need to know.”

“Why do you even care?” I snapped, “You don't like me after what happened, so it doesn't even matter right?”

He stopped and turned me toward him seriously, “How in hell did you get an idea like that?”

“... What?”

“Lizzy, I have never _once_ doubted my feelings for you. I love you. And I always will. And if you think that's there's any chance that you could ever possibly love me back, _please_. Tell me.”

I scanned his eyes, disbelievingly. What? _What?_

“Yes,” I said, before I knew I was talking, “Yes. Actually, I’m pretty sure there’s a high possibility that it's already happened.”

Now it was his turn to be shocked, “ _What?_ ”

I reached up and pressed my lips to his. He stared back at me with wide eyes before melting into my touch. The world spun as he weaved his fingers into my hair to pull me closer to him. I brought my hands up to wrap around his neck, kissing him harder.

He _loved_ me!

I finally pulled away for air, and rested my forehead on his, chuckling.

“If I had known you still felt this way, I wouldn't have waited so long to do that.”

“ _Ditto_ ,” he replied, breathlessly.

I laughed and reached down to intertwine our fingers together.

“Are you still planning on going back home tomorrow?”

He let out a loud laugh, “No, actually. I think I’ve found a reason to keep me here.”

I grinned, jokingly, “And that reason is Caroline Bingley?”

He chuckled more and pulled me into another kiss. _Man_ , I could get used to that.

“I love you, Lizzy,” he whispered.

His using my first name sent tingles down my spine.

“I love you, too, William.”

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you liked it!
> 
> Leave a comment/kudos if you did or drop by my tumblr: were-what-killed-the-dinosaurs.tumblr.com
> 
> Thanks for reading!


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